Brad Botwin, founder of the anti-illegal immigration group Help Save Maryland, says he has been called a Nazi, a racist and a member of a hate group when he’s organizing protests of day labor centers in Montgomery County.
Botwin says he’s frustrated that his efforts to get Montgomery County government leaders to crack down on illegal immigrants residing within the county make people think he’s worthy of those labels.
“We get people calling us KKK members and racists all the time,” Botwin said. “As a Jew, the Klan wouldn’t have me for a member any day. I find it very insulting to hear these things shouted at me by people on megaphones who have never spoken to me.”
But immigrant advocacy group members say they believe the actions of anti-illegal immigration groups are often racist. Alicia Ruiz, an organizer with Virginia’s Tenants and Workers United, said when Minutemen come to area day labor centers, they only target Latinos for harassment and intimidation methods. Ruiz said these groups take pictures solely of the Hispanic workers at the centers, threatening to post the pictures on the Internet, and ignore people of other races.
“When they talk about immigration problems, they don’t talk about illegal immigration from Europe,” Ruiz said. “They’re always talking about Latin America. It is a color issue, because if they really just oppose illegal immigration, they’d think about other areas. There are illegal immigrants from Russia and Australia, too.”
Hessie Harris, a black woman who’s a member of Botwin’s group, said she’s not afraid of the racist label.
“People want to say anybody who’s against illegal immigration is a racist,” Harris said. “Well, if supporting the enforcement of laws makes someone a racist, so be it. People throw the term racist out there as if it’s putting a crucifix before a mythical Dracula.”
Botwin agreed.
“They paint us with a broad brush,” he said. “There are cries of racism, xenophobe and discrimination, patently false that anything with a name like ours would be for that. We are anti-illegal immigration, not anti-immigration.”
Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA of Maryland, a Montgomery County immigrant advocacy group, said that while he believes some tactics used by anti-illegal immigration groups are racist, he does not think they should be silenced.
“I also believe they have the right to express themselves,” Torres said.
